UN envoy to Liberia honours Mongolian peacekeepers in Sierra Leone

The top United Nations envoy to Liberia today paid tribute to the Mongolian blue helmets, tasked with protecting the UN-backed Special Court for Sierra Leone (SCSL), for their efforts to promote peacebuilding in West Africa.

“Mongolian peacekeepers have acquired a reputation for bringing exceptional discipline to peacekeeping operations, an international outlook and an ever-ready approach to their tasks, regardless of the environment they find themselves in,” said Ellen Margrethe Løj, Special Representative of the Secretary-General and head of the UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL).

Speaking at a medal ceremony last week in honour of the 250 members of the Mongolian Guard Force under UNMIL’s command, she also expressed gratitude to the 10 women peacekeepers assigned to the Force for their dedication in providing vital services in communications and as doctors and nurses.

The event came on the heels of the International Day of Peacekeepers on 29 May, which this year stressed the unique role played by women in peacekeeping.

The Mongolian Force provides security for the premises of the Special Court, protects the detainees when they are moved outside the Court’s compound, and is responsible for evacuating officials and detainees in cooperation with the UNMIL’s Quick Reaction Force (QRF).

The SCSL, established in January 2002 in an agreement between the country’s Government and the UN, is mandated to try those bearing the greatest responsibility for crimes against humanity and violations of international humanitarian law in its civil-war since 1996, the 11 year-conflict began in 1991.